13 ms·
Jacob Appelbaum: What Has This Man Done?
- guard-of-terra 10y agoIs there a criminal prosecution going? If there is not, why are we calling person a criminal?
- 0xFFC 10y agoThis is my question too. Maybe it is because I do not track news closely. Bunch of people claimed have been harassed by Jacob, okay? Was there any evidences? Was there any trail?
- guard-of-terra 10y agoMakes me proud for the Russian activist. She's not only acting as responsible person, but also has guts to go vocal against groupthink campaign.
- sdoering 10y agoAs the news piece explicitly states, there is no an was never a formal investigation as no one ever filed one with law enforcement. Even Mr. Applebaum didn't file a suit against the alleged calumny. So we have no way of knowing anything. It is just a question of whom to believe (if one wants to believe any side in this play). Some people accuse him, some people defend him. He defends himself. No one can prove anything. My learning is the same as of some unnamed people in the article. In Germany one should never (esp. after our latest reforms on sexual laws) have sex without written and videotaped consent of the other party, esp. if they do not know the party. And every single consented practice would have to be signed off also. That nowadays someones reputation can be destroyed with such an ease, I am appalled.
- guard-of-terra 10y ago> In Germany one should never (esp. after our latest reforms on sexual laws) have sex without written and videotaped consent of the other party I wonder if they have that in uploaded form: cute German girls consenting to have sex. Would be an entertaining watch if you ask me.
- DasIch 10y agoGerman law has recently merely been changed to require consent. It's still necessary to prove that consent was not given, to find someone guilty of rape. It seems very unlikely that Appelbaum would be found guilty by a court. I could also imagine that a prosecutor wouldn't even take this to court due to lack of evidence.
- hwh 10y agoAs you say yourself, there is no formal investigation. So there is no point to the "learning" you are suggesting. Indeed, we have had recent reforms. And if you oppose them, please do not hide it behind snide remarks. Those reforms, in essence, were as follows: Before the reforms, punishable sexual misconduct was given only in the case the victim opposed it actively. Actively meaning not words, but actual corporal, physical defense actions. What is new after the reforms, is that the victim now has to utter a recognizable will to not suffer the actions. As we are talking about penal laws, it is still needed to establish proof of this recognizable will. About reputation: penal laws do not have to do with that. Again, as you state, this can be seen in this case where there is no formal investigation.
- sdoering 10y agoSorry, but as far as I can tell you are not fully correct. A clearly stated "No" did already suffice before these "reforms". Also, I read a lot of articles by people way more versed in these topics then me who did really not agree with the way the new version of the law turned out. Even former judges who are afraid of the things to come under these new laws. Maybe I am wrong, but I do strongly believe in innocent until proven otherwise. At least for me this law feels more like another step in the direction of guilty until proven innocent. [Edit formatting]
- mcguire 10y agoJudging by the undisputed statements in the situation, I don't see much in the way of reputation to destroy.
- deleted 10y ago[deleted]
- kiproping 10y agoI think people should realize that different people approach things differently nowadays. Careful who you hang out with.
- mvdwoord 10y agoI found the posts from Suzie Dawson (@Suzi3D) to be quite interesting. Long but worth the read. https://contraspin.co.nz/the-weaponising-of-social-pt1-the-crucifixion-of-ioerror/ https://contraspin.co.nz/the-weaponising-of-social-pt1-the-c... https://contraspin.co.nz/the-weaponising-of-social-pt-2-stomping-on-ioerrors-grave/ https://contraspin.co.nz/the-weaponising-of-social-pt-2-stom... and https://contraspin.co.nz/the-weaponising-of-social-part-3-the-resurrection-of-ioerror/ https://contraspin.co.nz/the-weaponising-of-social-part-3-th...
- asr1 10y agoThe keypoint here is, that opsec is all about character. Doing sexpartys on MDMA with random strangers does not fit together with being the superman hacker. I would be interested to know who does the real work at the torproject.
- adrusi 10y agoAre you saying that his partying put the security of the Tor project at risk? For what reason?
- mcguire 10y agoCheck the history of the term "honey trap". Thanks to Wikipedia, I have a new favorite example: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mordechai_Vanunu https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mordechai_Vanunu
- asr1 10y agoI mean character assassination tactics did not get invented yesterday. A lifestyle like this puts the credibility of any organisation at risk. I wonder why we even need to discuss about this. In no other field would behavior like this be considered acceptable.
- fixermark 10y agoA quick scan of history would inform you that what is not acceptable in most fields is talking about sex parties publicly. The existence of crazy parties in various industry and entertainment fields throughout history is very well-documented.
- selimthegrim 10y agoThe one exception that proves this rule that comes to mind is Jack Parsons of Caltech.
- deleted 10y ago[deleted]
- sp332 10y agoWow this author really hates anarchists.
- qwertyuiop924 10y agoI don't know if Jacob assulted anybody. He might have. He seems like a jerk, but that's not really enough to punish someone. Also, the article use the word "hacker" wrong. /nitpick
- mcguire 10y ago"Also, the article use the word "hacker" wrong." How so? They aren't breaking into things (except each other's underoos).
- qwertyuiop924 10y agoHeh. Sorry. I think I misread the article.
- brl 10y agoTwo people published open letters resigning from their involvement in Tor yesterday: https://www.oneeyedman.net/?p=2581 https://www.oneeyedman.net/?p=2581 https://shiromarieke.github.io/tor https://shiromarieke.github.io/tor
- noisefridge 10y agoThe Appelbaum case is really tricky. But I think the world does need some context here. I have a lot of friends in common with Appelbaum. When you first meet him, he seems like the most interesting man in the world. He puts his own safety on the line to help build a world more free of surveillance, and he's one of the best advocates on the planet for the cause. But then you find out that he's run roughshod over pretty much every professional or personal relationship he's ever had. He seems to get away with it by relying on everyone else's reluctance to call him out. He cultivates a glamorous image by associating himself with important projects. I have no personal experience with him going after his critics, but that seems in character. So, while I have no actual knowledge of anything that happened in private, it is not at all a stretch to imagine him stepping over the consent line. At least among the people I know, there was no surprise at these accusations, more of a sad acknowledgement of "yeah, that seems like Jake". But that's also the problem with the pile-on that's happening. Every person who Appelbaum has really pissed off at one point or another (and there are A LOT) is joining in. The website that was set up to provide a forum for his accusers includes stories of plagiarism or Appelbaum just being angry about being criticized in public. While this does build up a picture of the man, it also isn't a good look for his accusers. Personally - it seems we have a case of a guy who might easily deserve to be ejected from a group with the "no asshole rule". But instead he's being ejected for a much more difficult accusation to prove (rape / consent violations). I do believe his victims, and the stories they tell are justification enough. But even so, there's a lot of problems in how he's being ejected from the community, with vigilante shaming websites that have no quality control. I'm really not sure if it was a good thing.
- berkeleynerd 10y agoWhy is this flagged? Is there a simple way to figure this out?
- PeCaN 10y agoCan we get this unflagged? Seems like a decent piece of investigative journalism IMO.
- deleted 10y ago[deleted]